Mubasher: Gold prices on Tuesday approached the one-week low reached in the preceding session, pressured by a stronger dollar, as risk aversion faded in the wake of robust US economic data.

By 8:37 am GMT, spot gold steadied at 1,312.20 per ounce, after touching their lowest level since 29 January at $1,308.20 per ounce, while US gold futures fell 0.21% to $1,316.50 per ounce.

For the US dollar, the index gauging the greenback against a basket of major six peers, rose 0.10% to 95.9480.

The dollar maintained its recent gains against other currencies, as investor risk appetite rebounded, pushing US Treasury yields up.

US job growth picked up steam last January, as employers hired the biggest number of workers in 11 months, indicating the underlying resilient performance of the economy despite cloudy outlook.

The solid job figures mollified concerns of a slowdown in the US economy, leading investors to scale back their wagers that the Federal Reserve would need to cut interest rates to buoy the economy.

The Fed’s new wait-and-see approach to its monetary stance fits for now, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Monday.

However, the US central bank could need to hike interest rates a little further, should the economy performs as well as expected, Mester noted.

Trade talks between the US and China had a “good vibe” with much work ahead, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Friday, as Beijing made good on a pledge to ramp up soybean purchases with orders of at least 1 million tonnes.